Minneapolis Muslim Pleads Guilty to Terrorism Offense

MINNEAPOLIS—Earlier today in federal court, a 26-year-old Minneapolis man pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to a conspiracy to murder, kidnap, and maim abroad. Omer Abdi Mohamed, also known as “Brother Omer” and “Galeyr,” who was indicted on November 17, 2009, entered his plea before United States District Court Chief Judge Michael J. Davis.

In his plea agreement, Mohamed admitted being a member of a conspiracy that recruited young men of Somali descent to travel to Somalia to fight against Ethiopian troops, who were in Somalia assisting the internationally recognized Transitional Federal Government (“TFG”) of Somalia. Mohamed admitted assisting the men in planning their trips, knowing that once in Somalia, the men intended to murder, kidnap, or maim Ethiopian and Somali government troops. Following the entry of the plea, United States Attorney B. Todd Jones said, “Those involved in this conspiracy, including Omer Abdi Mohamed, violated the law in a dangerous and misguided effort to support a terrorist organization. In the process, they tore apart many Somali-American families. Parents were left to fret over the disappearance of their young sons, who often left home without a word. In some instances family members discovered what happened to their relatives only by watching Internet videos being used as propaganda by al Shabaab. I doubt many of us can imagine the feelings in such circumstances, and I can only hope that the criminal prosecutions we continue to take against those involved, including Omer Abdi Mohamed, will help deter these ill-advised actions in the future.”

Between September and December of 2007, Mohamed admittedly attended meetings at a Minneapolis mosque, restaurant, and private residence, where he and his co-conspirators formed a secret plan that called for Somali men residing in Minneapolis to travel to Somalia to fight. He also facilitated the travel of several of these young men, including assisting them in obtaining plane tickets as well as the false itinerary needed by one man to mislead his family about the purpose of his travel.

In his plea agreement, Mohamed further admitted being present in Minneapolis when money was raised to mobilize groups of men to travel to Somalia. Many of the donations came from unsuspecting members of the Somali-American community, who were told the money was going to be used for Somalia relief efforts.

For his crime, Omer Abdi Mohamed faces a potential maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release. Chief Judge Davis will determine his sentence at a future hearing, yet to be scheduled. This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, and it is being prosecuted by United States Attorney B. Todd Jones, Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles J. Kovats, and Trial Attorney William M. Narus of the United States Department of Justice National Security Division.

The Associated with terrorists Press has a different spin.

Mohamed’s attorney, Peter Wold, said Mohamed chose to plead guilty because he has a young son and another child on the way, and faced the possibility of a much longer sentence if convicted. Wold described his client as someone who was motivated by patriotic feeling and didn’t know at the time of his actions what al-Shabab was about, and now opposes al-Shabab.

“He was only involved in a mission to go protect Somalia,” Wold said, adding that Mohamed later encouraged some of the travelers to return home.

Mo’ “opposes” the al Qaeda linked jihadi group now that he’s facing 15 years in the joint.

What happened to the contact at the local travel agency? How about the people who provided the false itinerary? How about that mosque and restaurant where these Somali Muslims conjured up the secret plans to wage jihad?

The AP is guilty of the worst kind of paternalism, patronizing these adults, who are fully functional and do understand better than anyone what they are doing. They’re Somali so they have a strong appreciation for what is going on in their native country and in their US communities.

Drul: You will never be whole as a sentient, compassionate human being until you are able to free your mind from the chains of it’s “CAPLOCKED-CAPTIVITY.” Until you are released from your mental bondage, you can never hope to soar ever higher into the realms of (quran free), free thinking. Exclusive use of caplock is highly frowned upon here. It is indicative of your state of cognative dissonance that in turn informs your ever loosening grip on reality. That would entail many years of counselling, psychotropic medication, electroshock therapy, and quite possibly, waterboarding to remedy. If you live in the United States, you could possibly apply for a monthly SSI check.

Israel was only called Palestina by the Romans after the exile of the Jews when it became part of the Roman state. It consisted of both Israel and Philistia, not to mention other lands in that general area.

Wold plead guilty because “he had a child on the way”…
Sure, like to Muslims children mean anymore than miniature walking bombs.

“didn’t know at the time of his actions what al-Shabab was about, and now opposes al-Shabab”…
Lots of taqiyya here…Nothing new to see here! Move along.

The guy is now so, so sorry that he got caught. He isn’t sorry for what he did. He lies through his teeth to get off the hook for the crimes he committed. However, under this administration, he’ll probably get off with a slap on the wrist because the leftists believe, or at least, want to believe him.